Uncommon Valor *** (1983, Gene Hackman, Robert Stack, Fred Ward, Patrick Swayze, Reb Brown, Randall ‘Tex’ Cobb) – Classic Movie Review 10,305

Director Ted Kotcheff’s exciting, tough though not-too-violent 1983 action war thriller Uncommon Valor follows the exploits of obsessed US Marine retired Colonel Jason Rhodes (Gene Hackman) and his dirty half-dozen of crack vets trying to find his son.

He was reported missing in action in Vietnam ten years ago, but the colonel is certain the lad is still alive in a forgotten PoW camp deep in the jungles of Laos, and that his rag-tag private rescue team can find and rescue him.

Uncommon Valor is well-made, above-average gung-ho action fare, thanks to a powerful, penetrating screenplay by Joe Gayton, Kotcheff’s sturdy, action-packed, pacy direction, Stephen H Burum’s exciting cinematography, James Horner’s score and, especially, Hackman’s rock-solid dependable star performance.

The right-wing Reaganite-era message-bashing may offend some audiences, but it is quite thoughtful and intelligent of its Rambo–Missing in Action kind.

The TV print trims it for strong language and violence.

Also in the cast are, Robert Stack, Fred Ward, Reb Brown, Randall ‘Tex’ Cobb, Patrick Swayze, Harold Sylvester, Tim Thomerson, Gail Strickland, Jeremy Kemp, Constance Forslund, Michael Dudikoff, Charles Aidman and Barret Oliver.

Uncommon Valor started with a screenplay, once called Last River to Cross, by the actor Wings Hauser, inspired by the stories of his childhood friend, Gary Dickerson, who had been to Vietnam. It took him 18 months to write and he sold it to Paramount Pictures. However, once John Milius became the producer, the script was rewritten by Joe Gayton and a bitter Hauser lost credit in arbitration.

Hauser said: ‘John Milius is a scumbag right-wing bastard and I can’t wait for his day to die! That son of a bitch! The guy [Joe Gayton] who got the credit, he was a punk! I don’t think he’s sold anything since and I have and he’s a joke.’

It is produced by John Milius, David Brown, Michael Tolkin, Nick Wechsler and Buzz Feitshans. Kotcheff said Milius ‘did write under pressure but mainly he functioned as a producer’. Kotcheff said Milius wrote two or three scenes as well as making a number of very creative suggestions.

Kotcheff also directed the Rambo Vietnam War veteran film First Blood (1982).

It was a surprise hit as one of the top-earning films of 1983. Kotcheff said: ‘I think it’s partly the strong emotional tug of the father-son relationship.’ It cost slightly less than $11 million and grossed $30,503,151 in the US. The success might also be down to an effective publicity campaign showing a soldier slung over a friend’s back and saying: ‘C’mon, buddy, we’re going home.’ Paramount’s head of marketing said: ‘We were looking to appeal to males on an emotional level. We were offering them an attainable fantasy.’

The Laotian PoW camp at the film’s climax was built on a private ranch in the Lumahai Valley on the island of Kauai, Hawaii. The opening Vietnam War scene was filmed a short distance away in a rice paddy. There is also shooting in Salt Lake City, Utah, Sun Valley, California, and Castaic, California (the training camp). The helicopters used in the film were bought and repainted.

Uncommon Valor is directed by Ted Kotcheff, runs 105 minutes, is released by Paramount Pictures, written by Joe Gayton, based on a story by Wings Hauser, is shot by Stephen H Burum, is produced by John Milius, David Brown, Michael Tolkin, Nick Wechsler and Buzz Feitshans, and is scored by James Horner.

Roger Ebert said it is ‘two hours of clichés delivered with lead-footed predictability.’

© Derek Winnert 2020 Classic Movie Review 10,305

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